Metal door



May 30, 1944.

A. 5. K05 ET'AL METAL DOOR Filed July 9, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet l May 30, 1944. A. 5. ms EI'AL METAL noon F iled July 9, 1941 2 Sh eets-Sheet 2 fivenfoks red 61 ffos Patented May 1944 signments, to Consolidated Vnltec Aircraft Corporation, a corporation of Delaware ApplicationJJuly 9, 1941, Serial No. 401,614

The inventionrelates to metal doors. H One object .of the invention is to provide a metal door which -has. a high-strength-weight ratio'for use in vehicles'such as airplanes or automobiie's.

One object of the invention is to provide a door which is light in weight, durable and possesses the desired degree of stiifness for use in vehicles. Other obfects of the invention will appear from the detailed description.

The invention consists in the several novelfeatures which are hereinafter set 'fbrth and are more particularly defined by claims at the conclusion' hereof.

In the drawings: Fig. '1 is a perspective of a' door embodying the invention. Fig, 2 ls a perspective illustrating a portion of the composite metal panel in the door and the diagonal stiffening member in the panel. perspective taken on line 33 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a sectional perspective taken" on line 4-4 of i Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a perspective taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a section across the beamstructure in the lower panel.

The invention is exemplified in a door which panel 9 for holding a glass window in any usual manner, and is provided with hinge-members 8 whereby the door may be supported in the frame of a vehicle. The lower panel comprises asheet III of metal, such as thins-teal, which forms the smooth outer face on the door. The lower panel also comprises diamond-mesh expanded metal I I, which extends over substantially the entire inner face of the sheet I. .fllhe expanded metalis originally formed with the faces of the bonds extending nearly at right angles to the faces of the strands. This expanded metal is flattenedso planar. --The flattened expanded metal and'the sheet Iii are bonded together as for example by 11 Claims. (01. lee-'46) I Each flange I8 is spot-welded to the flange .20 and the margin of sheet l0. Each of the strips i4. IS, IS and I1 comprises a transverse inwardly extending flange 22, an inner side-flange '22, and an inturned transverse flange 24 which form a boxing around the margin of the lower' panel.

The strips l5 and I6 are extended above the strip 11 to form the sides, of the window panel and their upper ends are rigidly connected by a strip 26. An extension ID of the sheet l0 extends over,the' outer face of the strips l5 and I6 above strip I1 and the strip 26. Strip 26 and strips I5 and I6 above strip I! each have a pair of flanges 21 lapped by the extension ID or sheet I II. and. flanges forming a closed boxing 2-8, as illustrated in Fig. 4. The boxing 28 on strips i5 and I6 may each be formed of acontinuation of the flanges i8, 22 and 23; the extension of Fig. 3 is a sectional comprises a lower'closed panel 9 and an upper flan e 24 to the sheet Ill and added outturned flange2l. L

The lowermost panel is usually subjected to transverse and other loads and it is desirable to provide means forpreventing the bending or warping of the door during use. For this purpose a diagonal row between theupper corner of the'panel at the pivoted side of the door to the lower corner at the free side of one series of bonds and adjacent strands of the expanded metal are deflected or' arched away from the the faces of the bonds and strands will be 00- a spot-welding preferably ,across the bonds l2 between the diagonal strands IQ of the flattened ex- I pended metal. The margin of the sheet ll pro-I jects beyond the margins of the expanded metal, 7

as shown in Figs. 3 and 5. The border of the lower panel is formed by a sheet-metal bottom strip 7 l4, upright side-strips l5 and Ii, and an upper strip II. Each ot these strips is box-like in crosssection and comprisesa flange i8 fltting against the inner face of the sheet Il, the margin of which is folded-or lapped around theo'uter edge of flangelt, as at 20. to secure the strips around ,the margin of the sheet II and to form an abuttrode.

sheet In, as at 36, so that the bonds l2 will be,

spaced from the sheet. A diagonal channel-strip 31 has a flange 31 which flts on the bonds l2.

and flanges 38 which flt along the adjacent angular portions of the strands and is spot-welded as at l2 to all of the bonds I29 in the diagonal row. The ends of the flange 31- of strip 31 are extended to overlap t e flanges 22 of theborderstrips and welded thereto at 39. The strip is bent to conform to the plane of the sheet l0.

These arched portions of the expanded metal and the strip 31, when welded together as described, form a diagonal beam for stiflenlng the panel and preventing flexing thereof. This also functions toprevent diaphragming of the door when it is in use. The expanded metal is arched and the strip 11 is welded thereto. before the expanded metal is welded'tothe sheet It so that the bonds l2 of expanded metal and the strip 31 willbe accessible to the electrodes for spot-welding. This is done by inverting the strip 31 and placingits outer face on the lower electrode with the-arches between the flanges 31 so the inner faces of the bonds l2- will ment on the door for engaging the door-frame. 66- The marginal portionsot expanded metal ll be accessible to the'upper elecare not bonded to the sheet III, are bent obliquely away from the sheet II), as at 30, and have substantially right-angled terminals 3| which fit against the inner faces of the flanges 22 of strips I4, l5, l6 and I1 and are spot-welded thereto,

as at 32, to reinforceand stiffen the border of the door. Usually the lower panels of'the doors are somewhat bulged orfcurved'to conform to the vehicle body. In fabricating the door the expanded metal may be formed to the desired curve before the sheet 40 is bonded thereto, or the composite panel -of sheet and expanded metalmay be formed to the desired curve if bonded after flattening, and in either case retain its curved contour. The side strips l5 and I6 and the bottom and top strips f4 and II are also curved according to the curvature and contour of the door-frame.

Strip 3! extends across the short axis of the I diamond-shaped spaces in the expanded metal to stiffen the panel against stresses in the weakest direction of the expanded metal. The expanded metal is arranged so the long axes of the diamonds, which provide the greater transverse strength, extend diagonally, as nearly as practically possible, between the lower inner corner and the upper outer corner of the panel 9 and this provides sufllcient diagonal strength between "those comers to render an additional beamening means whichconsists of arches in' the eil'ective X-bracing for.

thin metal sheet, flattened diamond-mesh ex- .panded metal bonded to the inner face of the expanded metal. and a connecting strip bonded to the arches and secured to the border-strips of the door.

The invention is not to be understood as restricted to the details set forth, since these may be modified within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what we secure by Letters claim as new and desire to Patent is: l

1. A door having a closed panel comprising a thin imperforate metal sheet and expanded metal bonded to the inner face of the sheet at spots distributed throughout the area of the sheet and forming a 'rigid backing for preventing flexure of the sheet and box-like border-strips having transversely extendingv portions around the margins of theexpanded metal, the margin of the sheet and the border-strips being interfolded and bonded together, the marginal portions of the expanded metal having transversely extending portions bonded to the transversely extending portions of the strips.

2. A door having a chsedpanelcomprising a I thin imperforate sheet of metal, expanded metal bonded to the-inner face ofthe sheet at spots distributed throughout the area of the sheet and forming a rigid backing for preventing flexure of the sheet and border-strips around the margins of the expanded metal and secured to thesheet and comprising transversely extendings flanges, the expanded metal having portions extending away from the sheet and bonded to the flanges.

- expanded metal.

thin metal sheet, expanded metal bonded to the inner face of the sheet, border-strips'around the mar ins of the expanded metal, the expanded metal being' provided with substantially V-shaped portions bent away from the sheet, and a strip extending across and bonded to the apicesof the v-shaped portion of the expanded metal.

5. A door having a closed panel comprising a metal sheet, expanded metal bonded to the inner face of the sheet, border-strips around the margins of the expanded metal, the expanded metal bein vprovided with portions bent away from the sheet, and a strip provided with flanges and extending across and bonded to the bent portions of the expanded metal.

6. A door having a closed panel comprising a thin metal sheetf expanded metal bonded to the inner face of the sheet, border-strips aroundthe margins of the expanded metal, the expanded .metal having a row of portions bent away from the sheet, and a strip extendingacross and.

bonded to the bent portions of the expanded sheet, the expanded metal having a row of porticns bent away from the sheet aiong a line diagonally of the panel, and a strip connecting and bonded to the rowof bent portions of the 8. A door having a closed panel comprising a thin metal sheet, diamond-mesh expanded metal bonded to the inner iace ofthe sheet, the ex-.

panded metal having arrow of portions bent away from the sheet along-a line diagonally of the panel and across the short axis of the diamonds in the expanded metal, the long axis of the diamonds extending substantially acrossthe.

other diagonal ofthe panel, and a. strip connecting and bonded to the bent portions of the expanded metal.

9. A door having a closed panel comprising a thin metal sheet, diamond-mesh expanded metal bonded to the inner face of the sheet, border strips around the margins of the expanded metal,

the expanded metal having a row of portions bent away from the sheet along a line diagonally of the panel and across the short axis of the diamonds in the expanded metal, the long axis of the diamonds extending substantially across the other diagonal of the panel, and astrip connecting and'bonded to the bent portions of the expanded metal, and bonded to the border-strips.

10: A door having a closed panel comprising a thin imperforate metal sheet, flattened expanded metal which has oneface of the strands and bonds coplanar with the contiguous face of the sheet and bonded to the inner face of the sheet at spots distributed throughout the area of the sheet and ferming a rigid backing forpreventing flexure of the sheet, and transversely extending border-strips around the margins of the expanded metal, the margin of the expanded -m etal having diagonally extending portions se- I cured to the border strips. g

11. A door having'a closed panel comprising a thin imperforate sheet of metal, expanded metal bonded to the inner face of the sheet at spots distributed throughout the area 0! the sheet and forming a rigid backing for preventing flexm'e of the sheet, and border-strips around the margins of the expanded metal, secured to thesheet and having portions extending transversely to the plane of the sheet, the expanded metal having diagonally extending marginal portions with ends bonded to the transversely extending portions of the border strips.

ALFRED S. KOS. GLENDON T. GERLACH. PETER ALTMAN. 

